Talent Acquisition Lead

About us

The Financial Times is one of the world’s leading news organisations, globally recognised for its authority, integrity and accuracy, with a mission to deliver quality information and services worldwide.

At the FT, curiosity thrives and ambitious thinking is rewarded. Here, you’re given the chance to reach millions, create work that matters and deliver impartial journalism in a polarised world.

In our warm, collaborative culture, you’ll connect with a diverse community of experts who support your growth, career aspirations and wellbeing.

Your future at the FT will be filled with opportunities that challenge and inspire you. With no fixed path, you’ll discover new skills and forge a career that can take you anywhere.

Build a newsworthy career at the FT.

Our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion 

We believe in the power of unique perspectives and want all voices in our organisation to be heard, respected and valued. A supportive workplace is one where employees feel they can be themselves and operate to their full potential. We are committed to removing barriers for everyone, with a focus on addressing those faced by underrepresented groups.

The Role

The Financial Times is seeking a Talent Acquisition Lead to shape how we attract and hire world-class talent across our Product & Technology department.

Reporting into the Global Head of Talent Acquisition & Employer Brand, you will develop and deliver the Product & Technology TA strategy, ensuring alignment with global priorities while driving hiring predominantly across London and Sofia. You will lead a small TA team, partner with senior stakeholders, and represent the FT externally to strengthen our employer brand and build diverse, inclusive talent pipelines.

This is an opportunity for a strategic, data-driven lead who thrives in a fast-paced, global environment and wants to make a real impact on how we grow and shape our product & technology organisation.

Key Responsibilities

Strategy & Leadership

• Develop and implement the Product & Technology TA strategy, aligned with the global TA strategy.
• Manage and develop 2 x recruiters based in London and Sofia, ensuring excellence in delivery.
• Act as senior point of contact for Technology & Product hiring, providing insights to leadership and influencing workforce planning.
• Use data and market insights to shape hiring strategy and priorities.
• Act as a strategic advisor to Hiring Managers, guiding role design, skills requirements, and workforce planning.
• Lead or contribute to cross-functional talent projects that improve TA processes and outcomes.

Stakeholder Partnership & Hiring Excellence

• Partner with Hiring Managers to define skills requirements and effective hiring approaches.
• Lead role briefings, debriefs, and hiring manager training sessions.
• Ensure a high-quality, inclusive candidate experience across all processes.
• Collaborate with People Business Partners and global TA colleagues to anticipate future skills needs.
• Provide quarterly recruitment updates to the CPTO and product and technology executive team.

Process, Data & Innovation

• Ensure accurate use of Greenhouse for consistent reporting and smooth candidate journeys.
• Track and share recruitment data and insights with stakeholders to drive accountability.
• Drive the adoption of AI and use of recruitment technology, finding opportunities to innovate and optimise how we hire.
•  Continuously refine recruitment practices to balance speed, quality, and experience.

Talent Attraction & Employer Brand

• Help to steer the recruitment marketing and employer brand strategy for Product & Technology, partnering with recruitment marketing to design and deliver impactful campaigns.
• Build and engage with the FT’s tech talent community across priority markets.
• Contribute to recruitment marketing content, campaigns, blogs, and social media activity that showcase our culture and EVP.
• Represent the FT at external tech events, conferences, and community meet-ups, strengthening brand visibility.
• Drive innovative sourcing strategies to build diverse pipelines and meet DE&I goals.

Skills & Experience Required

• Proven experience leading end-to-end recruitment for technical, product, design, or data roles.
• Experience of line managing and developing recruiters and/or sourcers, ideally in a global organisation
• Strong background of building sourcing strategies for hard-to-fill roles.
• Experience designing and delivering TA strategies aligned with business priorities.
• Demonstrated ability to act as a strategic advisor to senior stakeholders, influencing hiring strategies and decisions. .
• Experience leading and delivering talent projects (e.g process improvements, system implementations, DE&I initiatives, recruitment marketing campaigns, employer brand activity, industry events, skills-based hiring, etc).
• Strong data fluency and ability to use insights to influence.
• Proficiency in Greenhouse (or equivalent ATS).
• Excellent stakeholder management, relationship-building, and influencing skills at senior levels.
• Collaborative, innovative, and proactive approach with strong commercial awareness.
• Experience using or exploring AI and recruitment technology to improve sourcing, screening, or process efficiency.
• Curiosity about emerging tools and ability to assess their impact on candidate experience and hiring outcomes.

Desirable, but not essential

• Experience in partnering with recruitment marketing or delivering recruitment marketing strategies, including campaigns, content and events. 

What’s in it for you? Our benefits

Our benefits vary by location, but we are committed to providing best-in-class perks across all our offices. These include generous annual leave, medical cover, inclusive parental leave packages, subsidised gym memberships and opportunities to give back to the community. Full details of our benefits are available here.

We’ve embraced a 50% hybrid working model (averaging two to three days onsite) that fosters trust and remote adaptability while encouraging in-person camaraderie and peer learning. Additionally, we are open to accommodating specific flexible working pattern requests for all roles where feasible.

Accessibility

We are a disability confident employer and Valuable 500 signatory.

Please let us know if you require any reasonable adjustments/personalisation as part of the application process or to enable you to attend an interview. If you would like to discuss your requirements or have any questions, email [email protected] and a member of our team will be happy to help.

Further information

At the FT, we embrace innovation and the use of technology and appreciate that individuals may leverage AI tools as part of their job application process. Whilst we are happy for you to use AI to assist with your application, it is essential that all information provided is authentic and accurately represents your skills, experience, and qualifications.

Candidates should be aware that the use of AI throughout the application process may be monitored to ensure a fair and transparent hiring process for all.

Please beware of fraudulent job postings and offers claiming to be from the Financial Times. All legitimate opportunities will direct you to apply through the official Financial Times careers site, and the FT will never ask for financial information, payments, or referrals to third parties during the hiring process. If you have any concerns about the legitimacy of a job posting or suspect any scam activity, please contact [email protected].

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